Angel Of The Wasteland
by Lightan117
Summary: "We are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided." (During Fallout 4) Evelyn didn't have much of a choice when it came to her life. Control slipping away through her fingers, the world testing the walls she build, with an older brother searching for his baby boy. She wants to be strong, to break the chains. But will she burn the world again doing so? (Hancock/OC)
1. Prologue

" _Sometimes even to live is an act of courage." ― Seneca_

~oOo~

 _ **Ring-a-round the Rosie,**_

It's funny actually; I was on two weeks' vacation when the world when to hell in a handbasket.

After putting in so much work for how many months I managed to get two weeks of paid vacation so that I can go visit my older brother and his family. Two whole weeks of picking at and teasing my brother about the crap he pulled when we were just tots. Two whole weeks of spending time with my sister-in-law who I actually enjoy talking to. And two whole weeks of spending time with my favorite nephew in the whole wide world!

Ah! Shaun is such a cute and adorable baby! So well behaved and quiet too! My brother is lucky to have such a loving family to have of his own. I remember when our parents were alive and how we would spend their off days at the park or go down by the shore to just enjoy the ocean. Now that my brother has his own family, he keeps asking me when I'll start my own. I just reply that men are picky.

But after one week with my family I thought things couldn't get any better…

Until Vault-Tec came a knocking on his door…

When the Vault-Tec rep came to visit, asking for my brother about signing his family into the vault he always came at a wrong time. My brother would be away at work, or at the vet programs, or he would be out with his wife for some alone time. Ever since the baby, his wife Nora seemed a little bit more tired and stressed. I told her that I would gladly watch the little one so that they could go off like teenagers again. Oh gosh, I remember their wedding…let's just say that baby Shaun came shortly after their wedding night.

But with the Vault-Tec urgency for him to sign, I knew that the world wouldn't be the same for much longer. Word is that the crisis is only getting worse and tomorrow looks even worse than today looks. Life underground, however, scares me a little bit. Metal walls, that sanitary smell, and those horrible blue Vault-Tec jumpsuits. Not a future I'm looking forward too. If I wasn't in the science department I would so change the design, but I'm not so those jumpsuits will have to do. Then again…I wouldn't be here now if I wasn't in the science department or for that matter, a loyal volunteer.

Someone who wants the world to see hope.

That my sacrifice for humanity wasn't wasted but it was.

It was nothing but a dead end and I got the short stick.

Now I have to live with the side effects.

And spend the rest of my days being poked and prodded, taking disgusting medication, and the fear of losing control of what little control I have left of my own life.

Joyous.

 _ **A pocket full of posies,**_

I woke to the smell of bacon and to a baby crying. I rolled out of bed, walking a little ways to the bathroom to shower and get ready for the day. Once I was clean and dressed I headed towards the living room where Codsworth was busying around the kitchen.

"Good morning Miss Evelyn." Codsworth said as I walked out of the guest bedroom. For being a Mr. Handy Codsworth is one of the best.

"Morning Codsworth. What's for breakfast?" I asked as I sat at the island in the kitchen.

"Bacon and eggs with coffee. Would you like a cup?" He asked.

"Yes please." Codsworth turned around to pour me some. "Is anyone else awake?"

"The sir went to fetch the mail and I believe the madam is in her room. Young Shaun is in his crib at the moment." He answered courtly before putting a cup in front of me. "Will you be staying the rest of the week Miss Evelyn?"

"Of course! I'll be staying until after Halloween. After that I have to go back to Big Mountain for another round of tests." I told him, sipping slowly on my coffee.

"I hope those scientists know what they're doing madam." Codsworth said before turning around to make breakfast.

"Me too Codsworth. Me too." I said to no one. Just when I started to relax I was frightened when an arm wrapped itself around my neck to put me in a headlock. I quickly relaxed and put up a fake struggle, when I figured out it was my brother. We put up a fake fight, letting him take me out of my seat so that we could have more room, before he released me; smiling broadly as I weakly punched him in the chest. "Ass."

"Such language from a lady." Her brother said before kissing me on the cheek. "Morning."

"Morning." I said and smiled back at him. "Who ever said I was a lady?"

"Not me, that's for certain." He said before he noticed that Codsworth placed some bacon on her plate, quickly stealing a piece before running off before I could whack him for stealing my food. "Did you take your meds yet?" He called from the hallway.

"I will after breakfast. Goes down better if I eat something." I called back before sitting down once more. Codsworth made me two more pieces of bacon before returning back to make the rest of the breakfast.

"Good morning Evelyn." Nora came out to give me a kiss on the cheek. She too, took a piece of bacon from my plate just like my brother did and I wondered if some of his personality was rubbing off on her.

"Morning Nora." I said, showing her a smile with eggs stuck in between my teeth.

"That's gross." She said and gave me shoulder a shove.

"You think it's funny, don't deny it." I told her and we both had a good laugh. Once I was done eating I headed into the guest bedroom to take my medication. I sat on my bed, reaching under it to pull out my one strap bag that held a medium size case that was thumb print locked. The case opened with a hiss and inside held a months' worth of medication in glass vials. The dark blue liquid inside was foul tasting as I downed one, putting the vial back in the case, shutting it close.

My heart began to race, the medicine sliding down my throat to settle in my stomach. I wanted to gag; my body wanting to expel the horrid tasting liquid. My stomach began to cramp as I rested my elbows on my knees to try and keep it down. I hated this part. The pain that came shortly after. _Side effects include vomiting, dizziness, nauseous, an increase in heart rate, and slight numbing of the tongue._ After my head and body started to calm down I stood up to go back into the living room.

But across the hall I heard baby noises and I decided to poke my head in to see my nephew. Swaddled in a yellow baby blanket and hat, cooing away at the rocket mobile above his head. I smiled at him, letting him take my finger of my one hand. He smiled at me and with a small look over my shoulder I started to twirl my finger, making the mobile move without even touching it.

Another gift I got from my sacrifice.

What they did to me…

I don't feel human at time anymore…

"I thought you weren't going to use that anymore unless you had to." I stopped at the sound of my brothers' voice.

"I use it…sometimes. Not all the time. I feel like I just need some practice if I use it in small ways." I told him before looking back to the baby, not meeting my brother's gaze that I felt on the back of my head.

"You know your limit." He said and walked around the crib to the other side. "You'll tell me if something was wrong right?" I looked up to see a worry look on my brother's face.

"You know I will. It's just…"

"What?"

"The last time I went to Big Mountain…they asked something of me I couldn't give them an answer to." I told him and looked back down at the baby. How innocent and perfect he was, not knowing of the horrors around him.

"What did they ask? Haven't they asked enough of us, of you, already?"

"They wanted to do more mental training, more pushing the limits. They want to take me off the suppressants and test my natural control." I told him and my brother's fists clenched till the knuckles turned white.

"They want to fix their mistake, what they did to you! You're going to allow them to go back in and mess around more with your brain? With your body? Didn't you learn the last time?"

"I did it for us Adam! What would you rather I do? Have a complete stranger hold my leash or would you rather hold it to protect me? I did what I had to for both of us. We needed the money."

"We could've survived without it!" He hissed at me.

"We were homeless! We hadn't eating in two days. It was my choice."

"I know, I know." He said and walked around to hold me close, kissing my forehead. "It's your choice, it's always been your choice. And I trust your choice." He said before walking out of the room. I stayed twirling the mobile around for Shaun for a while before I decided to join the others in the living room.

As I walked down the hallway, I heard talking coming from the living room and when I walked around the corner my brother was talking to the Vault-Tec rep finally. I waved to the man who waved back before sitting on the couch, listening to the news. Nothing really exciting, just talk about the war going on and also the weather about this upcoming Halloween weekend.

"Wonderful! That's…everything…Just gonna walk this over to the Vault! Congratulations on being prepared for the future!" The Vault-Tec rep said before the door closed.

"All set for the future?" I asked.

"Yeah." He groaned.

"Hey, it's peace of mind. That's worth a little paperwork, right?" Nora asked.

"For you, Evelyn, and Shaun, no price is too high." He answered, kissing her on the cheek.

"Good answer." Nora chuckled.

"I'm on the list?" I asked him.

"Of course, your family are you not?"

"Well yeah but…"

"No buts, butt head." He flicked my ear.

"You're the butt head." I muttered. Codsworth came in and said that Shaun needed some parenting love. I waited out in the living room while the family had a little bonding time in the baby's' room. Then the news on the TV turned dark…

 _ **Ashes! Ashes!**_

"Guys, you need to see this!" I called from where I sat on the couch.

" _Followed by…yes, followed by flashes. Blinding flashes, sounds of explosions…We're…we're trying to get confirmation._ " I turned around to see my brother standing behind me. Nora was holding Shaun not far from us. " _But we seem to have lost contact with our affiliate stations... We do have…coming in…confirmed reports. I repeat, confirmed reports of nuclear detonations in New York and Pennsylvania. My god._ " With that the TV went to the broadcasting system and the sirens went off, loud and foreboding that rang loud.

"We need to get to the Vault. Now!" Adam said.

"I've got Shaun. Let's go!" Nora said. I was about to follow them when I turned around to head back towards my room.

"Evelyn!" I heard my name being called. I grabbed the one thing I needed, making sure my backpack was on tightly before heading out of the house. My hand was grabbed and my brother started to drag me along with him as we ran for the Vault. "Don't you dare let my hand go." He said as we ran up the path. The Vault-Tec rep was there, talking to a military man with a clip board. When he tried to push past a man with a machine gun started it up, threating him to back off. I felt sorry for him but now wasn't the time. Sure we were all scared but surely they would try to save the others who weren't on the list.

"We're on the list." Nora said to the man. He checked his clip board before he allowed the four of us to pass.

"Step on the platform, in the center!" Said a man as we passed him. We stood on the center of the platform with a few of the others from town. My stomach was in knots and I looked over at my brother who gave a kiss to his wife and baby before holding me closer. We then watched in horror as a large mushroom cloud appeared, followed by a massive boom. I clung to my brother as the platform began to move down, smoke and debris flying over us as we just made it.

I looked up as the sky turned red then all together black.

We moved like zombies deeper into the Vault. Doctors with smiles told us that we were okay now and that the life in the vault would be better now. One of the doctors showed me to the medical room where I could place my medicine under lock and key until I was done being decontaminated. I changed into the ugly blue jumpsuit and was showed where my family was. They were already in these chambers and I was told to get in, that it would only take a few minutes. A part of me told me not to believe them but the fear still running through my veins overrode my fear to question.

Without a word I stepped into the chamber next to my brother. The door closed and I tried to relax. Slowly it got colder and colder, my strength to fight off sleep failed and I allowed myself to drift off.

Life in a Vault…

Mandatory now…

 _ **We all fall down!**_

~oOo~


	2. Waking Up To Ash And Dust

" _Begin at the beginning," the King said, very gravely, "and go on till you come to the end: then stop." ― Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland_

~oOo~

"Welcome home, subject 360." A voice came from the darkness. It echoed in the nothing before me as my feet moved. It felt like I was walking through a strong current, pushing past my legs to go backwards. I couldn't see anything, only darkness as invisible hands tugged at my own to drag me deeper into the dark. I couldn't think; I could feel my fingers actually. Everything felt numb or nonresponsive but I could feel the current or the hands but everything else was dull…I can't explain it…

Why can't I think straight?

"It's good to be home doctors." My voice…it sounded so lifeless, hollow, and empty as a bright light was then shone in front of me. I didn't flinch or back away; my feet coming to a stop on front of five shadow figures stood in white doctors' coats with sterile gloved hands, all reaching out towards me. They're faces were hidden in shadow, the only outline I can make of their eyes is from the shine of the goggles that they wore on their faces.

I've seen their faces before…

I know I have…

Have I?

Why can't I remember…

"We have many questions for you subject 360. Please, take our hand. We must begin our work." Their voices echoed together.

"Yes…" My hand was spinning, twirling as my own hand started to move towards them.

" _Eve!_ " Who…who said my name…wait…my name? " _Eve…wake up!_ "

"Come to us subject 360." The doctors' voices got louder and more stern. Someone behind me took my free hand to pull me away from the bright light and into the darkness once more; away from the hands that demanded me that I take them. "Subject 360…"

" _Evelyn, wake up!_ "

The first doctor, the one directly in front of me stepped forward with both his arms stretched out in front of me. I still couldn't see his face in the shadow of the darkness but there was something familiar…. familiar but it felt wrong. I wanted to shrink away from those arms and run but hand betrayed me, trying to touch his.

"Come to us..."

" _Don't you dare do this to me!_ "

"That is an order…"

" _Wake up!_ "

"My pet…"

~oOo~

My eyes shot open, grabbing the person who leaned over me by the arms so that I could use their surprise to flip us so that I would be seated on top of their chest. I placed my forearm snugly against their neck, pressing down so that their oxygen would be cut off. No way this person could shove me off.

I was trained to never let go…

To cut their oxygen off…

To kill…

"Eve…it's…me…Adam…" I froze before scrambling off my brother. I sat a few inches away from him, breathing heavy as I took in the room we were in. It was the pod room they made us step into but only it was cold.

Did they…freeze us?

"Adam, what the hell?! Where are we? What happened?!" I asked him as he coughed. Once air was back in his lungs he looked at me with sad eyes. There was even tears and evidence that he was already crying. "Adam…what's wrong?" I asked him, crawling over to him. He wrapped his arms around my waist, crying into my lap as I held onto him.

"Nora…Shaun…they're gone." Adam said and I looked towards the pod Nora was supposed to be in but what I saw made tears come to my eyes as well. There, in the pod, sat Nora with a blood hole in the side of her head. Her blond hair was matted with it, the blood spatter was everywhere on the inside and her eyes were frozen open.

She sat in a frozen death.

With no Shaun in her arms.

"Adam, where's Shaun?" But Adam didn't answer, he just continued to cry. "Adam, look at me!" I grabbed his face in my hands; making him look at me. "Where is Shaun? What happened?!"

"I woke up in the pod but I couldn't get out. There were these people outside, opening Nora's pod. Shaun started to cry and they tried to take him away from Nora but she fought back. When she didn't give him up freely they…they shot her and took Shaun." Adam explained in what I could make out between his blubbering.

"Who took him? Adam, focus!" I shook my brother.

"I don't know! I only saw the man's face. He was old with a beard and this long scar on the left side of his face. He was wearing funny clothing and there was a woman with him who took Shaun but I didn't see her face. They said that if it doesn't work…at least they still have a backup. Then the pod activated again and I fell asleep." Adam took a breath then looked over at his wife. "When I woke up again I fell out. I tried to help her, I really did Eve, but she was already dead when the pod opened. Then I went to you…but when I got the pod open you weren't breathing either. I tried so hard to get you to wake up. I couldn't lose you too…" He said. I held him close, allowing him to mourn but we needed to get moving.

We needed to find out what happened to us and why.

Where is Shaun and why did they kill Nora?

Or worse, how far away are they from us? Will they come back for us?

"Come on Adam, you need to help me with this. Just hang onto me and we'll get out of here." I told him, trying to get him to his feet but he shook his head.

"What about Nora? We can't just leave her here!" He said and I kissed my brother's forehead. I made him let go of me before I moved over to Nora's pod. I made it so that her eyes were closed and her hands were folded in her lap. I slowly and gently took the wedding ring from her finger to place in my pocket before I closed the pod door and turned towards my brother once more.

"We'll come back to bury her when we find out what's going on. Please Adam, we need to go." I said to him and helped him to his feet. He clung to me as we went through the door we entered from. "Why would Vault-Tec do this to us?" I mainly asked no one since my brother was clearly out of it.

With the door to the way out locked I sat my brother down on the ground while I looked for a different way out. When I got closer to the generator room I almost screamed at the size of the cockroaches that ran at me when I entered a room. I grabbed the baton on the table and slammed it into the head of the bug. Not to mention that there was nothing on the terminal either about what the hell is going on but I only had to hope that the upstairs wasn't as bad a down here.

Yeah, having skeleton isn't what I was actually hopping to see down here.

And more large bugs…

Why did it have to be bugs?!

But finding a 10mm pistol isn't bad either. One for me and my brother along with a couple of rounds for each of us along with some stimpacks. I found a small duffle bag under the self, shoving the weapon except the baton inside. The gun in the case hanging on the wall however isn't bad looking and with only the one bobby pin in my hair I knew that I would have to cross every part of my body to hope that it wouldn't break…

Success!

Now, what the hell is a cryolator?

I shook my head and continued on, logging into the overseers' terminal to find out that this stupid vault is designed to test the long-term effects of suspended animation on unaware human subject. Is everything relating to Vault-Tec involving the use of unaware human test subjects?! They already had Big Mountain full of them but they needed to stick experimental vaults that made people believe that they were saving them, only to fuck around with their heads and bodies! But I also found out what the cryolator is meant to do…sooo, yeah it's a freeze ray basically. I found out what the staff and security were meant to do along with all the other personnel that were stuck down here, waiting for the all-clear signal that Vault-Tec was supposed to give them…

And by judging by the skeleton I found, I'm guessing it's been some years since the all-clear was given. Not to mention the overseers' log was full of memos about what went wrong down here. Mutiny being the only thing that lead to the vault opening.

But where did the people go? Are they even still alive somewhere?

I unlocked the service tunnel which lead me to the entrance way. I took care of more bugs, shivering at the guts that I felt under my boot as I crushed their heads before kicking them to the wall. I backtracked, looking for the medical room where my medicine case was waiting for me, untouched with an inch of dust caked onto it. I slipped the strap over my head before going to find my brother again. But I stopped just short of the door.

There, out of the corner of my eye still strapped to its previous owner was a pipboy.

My brother was right where I left him only he stopped crying and was now just staring into space. I grabbed him, making sure I was supporting him as we walked back to the entrance way. I've never seen my brother so lifeless before; it's scaring me. His face was pale and he looked dead almost; like a zombie. When we got there I sat him on the ground again before tying the door but it needed a pipboy to activate the lock. I plugged in mine and the vault door began to move with a loud creak. Sirens went off as I attached the pipboy I found on the ground to my brother's wrist. I got him to his feet once again, then stretching out my arm to help moved the vault door quicker. It creaked and moaned as I sped up the gears, it sliding to the right as one of the flood lights shone upon us at vault door finally opened; the walkway extending before as we made our way to the elevator.

We stood on it, taking a deep breath as I shit the button to send up back up.

"What if we die?" Adam asked as we started to go up.

"To which I highly doubt but if we do then going up here was for shit." I said and the door above our heads opened up.

The sun…the actual sun shone above our heads in a bright light as we came to a stop at the top. Our vision became cloudy as we adjusted to the brightness but when my eyes focused, I almost began to cry at what I saw.

The world…

The world was destroyed…

Gray, browns, and rust colors were everywhere. Dead trees reached for the sky like skeleton fingers from the grave as the ground cracked beneath them. Fences were bended and twisted and in the distance I could see the neighborhood my brother used to live in. Everything around us looked destroyed or like as if it just sat there for years.

Was there any hope for us in this world?

"Can you walk now?" I asked Adam.

"Yeah." He said, his voice still lifeless. He stood on his feet and followed me as I searched the yellow containers for anything that might help us. Rad-away, rad-x, more stimpacks and these bottle caps that I had a feeling that might come in handy. Who knows, this world is all new to us and anything could be used for currency.

The slow walk back into town felt like forever. The building were rusted and half destroyed, the ground was ripped apart and weeds sprout from the middle of the road. If war did this to the land…I don't want to know what it's done to the people.

"As I live and breathe! You're alive!" I turn my head to see Codsworth floating over towards us.

"Codsworth? You're still here?" I asked him and he began a rant about how he thought we were dead after we ran off towards the vault. I looked over at Adam who simply stared at the house before going inside of it. "What happened after the bombs fell? Is there anyone still alive?"

"There are some people in Concord. They only shot at me a few times miss." Codsworth said. "If I may ask, where is the Mrs. and Shaun? I can see they aren't with you."

"Nora…is gone Codsworth and someone took Shaun." I told him, rubbing the back of my neck.

"Miss, these things you're saying…it must be from your hunger induced paranoia ". Not eating properly for 200 years will do that to you, I'm afraid."

"Wait…200…did you just say 200 years? That's how long we've been asleep?"

"A bit over 210 miss. Give or take of the earth's rotation and a few dings to the old chronometer." Codsworth said and I almost hit the floor with what he just told me. "If the Mrs. and the lad it not with you maybe they're with Shaun's playmate who lives down the street? We can try and see if they're there." Codsworth said, going back to thinking that Nora was still alive.

"It's the truth Codsworth, they're gone! Just stop it!" I screamed at him and regret it. "I'm sorry…Codsworth. Everything…is happening too fast and I'm losing my footing here. I can't…ughh!" I kicked at something at the ground and I ran my hands through my hair. I looked in the direction of the house where my brother disappeared into. He's not himself at all and it's understandable but I can't…I can't help him right now. I need more information about what's going on before I can do anything to help him.

"Miss Evelyn?"

"Codsworth, I'm going to Concord. Adam is inside, watch him. Make sure he doesn't leave the area until I return."

"Yes miss. I'll go see if would like me to whip him up a snack or something." Codsworth said and floated away after I gave him some stimpacks and the gun I picked up for Adam. Going house to house on my way out of Sanctuary led me to some more ammo and a few more medical supplies. The only thing I could clearly paint a picture of is what has happened since we went to sleep when I stumbled upon a corpse and this thing that looked like a dog only it's skin…

I stepped around it and continued on until I reached the Red Rocket truck stop I remember stopping to get a candy bar from before I reached my brother's house. It stood as a shadow of what it looked like before the bombs. The red color turned into rust and windows were long since gone. I'm surprised that it was still standing.

" _Woof!_ " I turned my head to see an actual furry animal I could recognize walk towards me.

"Hey boy, what are you doing out here by yourself?" I leaned down to allow the dog to sniff me. The dog licked my hand before I started to pet it, it's soft fur helping my mind ease the process of trying to wrap my head around what's going on around me.

This animal the only thing of any remembrance.

The dog began to growl and the these rather large pink things popped up from the ground. I switched between the baton and my pistol until the things were all dead. The dog licked my fingers and I petted its head as I calmed my beating heart. It's been a while since I had to worry about things attacking me. Sure, it may have been a couple of weeks but now that I know it's been 200 years…who knows if they're still alive.

If _he's_ still alive.

No…no he's not alive. All humans die. They have to.

After I went through the truck stop, finding what I could I moved on down the destroyed road towards Concord. I heard steps behind me and turned to see the dog following me.

"You gonna start following me now doggy?" The dog woofed and I smiled. "Okay, okay come on. Let's go. We got a lot of ground to cover." I said and the dog ran until he was in front of me, walking ahead. In the distance I could see the small town but at the same time it sent a feeling a dread to my stomach. They looked like ruins, empty shells of what they once were just like the Red Rocket truck stop. I stood at the top of the hill and I looked down at the buildings. Large bugs were eating off a dead corpse and it made my fists clench.

This world isn't what it used to be.

Was this hell?

Or a living nightmare for those who still walked it?

Was there anyone else even still alive despite Codsworth saying that there was people living here?

Would we even survive in this world we woke up in?

~oOo~

Thank you for reading! Please review and let me know what you think!


	3. I Wipe My Brow And I Sweat My Rust

" _You reap what you sow, Artyom. Force answers force, war breeds war, and death only brings death. To break this vicious circle one must do more than just act without any thought or doubt." – Khan, Metro 2033_

~oOo~

On the way back to my brother, my mind kept turning over to what happened at Concord.

Once I arrived I almost figured out this new world bust by simply looking at the mess that lay before me. People, attacking each other for survival and it seemed that one side was winning. Until they decided to turn their guns on me. After that, the remaining people who were decent enough not to attack me briefly told me of the fate of this future before more of those so called…raiders descended down upon the town once more. The old woman I talked to was strange enough, mostly about her knowing something she should never have information about but the time to question her sanity wasn't at this moment.

The worse part…wasn't the fragmented minds of the humans but the thing that crept from the darkness of the underground sewer grate at the end of the street.

The hulking mass that roared like thunder and struck like lightning.

The power armor that I wore didn't help me much when the thing threw me against the wall, knocking off my helmet. It pounced, growling close to my face as I waited for the thing to rip my head off but nothing came. I closed my eyes tight waiting my death but when nothing happened I opened them to see the eyes peering down its snout to look at me. I could barely breathe as this thing sat on my chest, blocking my view from my gun or anyway of freeing myself. Dogmeat, the name of the dog I found was busy with a dying raider to come to my aid.

What was I going to do?

Have a staring contest with it?

The thing came closer, sniffing me as I held my breath. It was missing an eye; a large scar ran from the top brow to its cheek. Its horns were large and pointed downwards. Before I could look at it more however, a raider I missed did the stupid thing of firing at it, drawing its attention from me to its attacker. It got off me and I was freed. Dogmeat came to my side and together, advoiding the large hulking mass we took down the last remaining raiders.

When it came down to two I searched for the minigun I found on the roof but the thing was blocking it. It stood in front of it, growling low as it got into a pouncing position like it was getting ready to attack.

I raised my gun…but lowered it.

For some reason, when I looked into the monster's eyes, I couldn't bring myself to fire at it. I put my gun away and faced it fully, hushing Dogmeat who whimpered like this was a bad idea. Taking a breath, I lowered my head in a bow and waited. The thing growled before shaking its head. Looking up I noticed that thing was walking towards me but not in a threating manner.

Once it was standing before I waited a second before reaching up try and touch it. For some reason, for some crazy reason I feel like…this thing and I are the same. Same crazy screw up monster we were made to be. The thing allowed me to touch it before it suddenly pulled away from me, turning around and walking away.

I remained where I was for a minute before Preston, one of the survivors of some group, asked if I was alright. When I yelled back at him he told me to meet him in the main hall. I sighed before making my way back towards the building. Preston and the other survivors were talking about their next move, going to Sanctuary. I really didn't say much, kind of watching until Preston turned to me and asked if I wanted to go with them, that this place was safe for all who wanted a fresh start.

"My brother is actually there. We sort of…just arrived. It's not much, I took care of some large cockroaches but other than that it's safe." I told him and he gave me a look but didn't say anything. Marcy gave Preston attitude about his great idea so I told her that no one was keeping her here. If she really didn't like it here, then she could leave.

She was quiet after that.

"Alright then, let's move." Preston said and then we left the empty shell of the town hall that once was filled with people. I remember like it was yesterday…for it was yesterday when I saw people walking down the street, waiting for the end of the world or maybe a sudden victory where the world would have been fixed in a few days. But that never happened.

Just as we hit the bridge that led into the one white picked fenced community full of small families and retirees, I spotted my brother sitting on one of the picnic benches near the river. I told Preston to make himself at home and that I'll find him after I had a talk with my brother. The man gave me a smile before heading towards a house where a workbench had been set up. No doubt that is where they'll start to rebuild. I waved to Codsworth before sitting next to my brother, making sure the old bench could take both of our weights. By now the sun was setting, the sun turning into a shade of orange you always see at sunsets but a tint of purple and red bled through it. There was no noise, no traffic or the sound of late night fires in the backyards, no small chatter of familiar voices, and certainly no bright lights from the town or any cities near us.

"You're back." Adam said as he just stared into the horizon.

"Of course I came back. I always come back." I answered him.

"I know but this time…I wasn't certain if you would. I feared I lost you." He said and silent tears flowed freely from his eyes. Adam was always the one who cried. He cried at his wedding and when his son was born. He even cried when I turned twenty-one! I think he was just proud I made it that far rather than crying because I was an adult. I'll always be his baby sister.

"I met some…interesting people at Concord. There's an old woman who can see the future and past, a Minuteman, a mechanic, and a couple who really need a therapist." I chuckled and Adam cracked a smile. "See, nothing I can't handle. Sure, I had people shoot at me but then again, I'm used to that part." Adam took my hand and held it tight. "How are you feeling?"

"Cold. Hungry. Tired. I slept for an hour most but I really couldn't sleep. I kept seeing her face and… _his_. That man that took my son." Adam said, teeth clenched as he seethed about the man. I know that anger; I've felt it too.

"We'll find him. I promise you. But as of right now we have no leads and have no idea of the area around here. I suggest we stay with these people until we know about what had happened in the last 200 years we've been asleep." I told him.

"So it's really been 200 years?" He asked in disbelief.

"That's what I keep hearing." I said as I reached into my pocket to pull out his wife's ring. "I'm going to hang onto this for you until you ask for it back. I'll keep it safe for you." I said as I attached it to a small chain I found before I left concord. Adam looked at me but simply nodded his head in agreement. "Come on, let's go meet the others. The old lady isn't so bad, kind if weird but then again we're a weird family."

I took Adam's hand as we made our way back to the house across from Adam's. Preston shook my brothers' hand, introducing us to Sturges the mechanic, Mama Murphy, Marcy and Jun Long. Adam took a shine to Dogmeat as the animal almost knocked him to the ground. I asked Preston if there was anything for you to help them out with so he put us to work. Adam and Sturges went to install some water pumps while I helped the ladies plant some melons behind the house in one of the fenced off gardens. Dogmeat was quite helpful digging holes for the seeds and helping putting up poles for what they call tatos. Once the guys game back I was able to scrounge around from what I collected at Concord and inside the houses to help Sturges build a turret to place outside the house we moved all the mattresses into. Until we got more people to get this place up and running, we needed to stay as close as possible. Besides, I hardly doubt that my brother really needed to stay in his old house.

The others had gone to sleep so it was just the three of us, Preston, Adam, and myself all sitting around the makeshift fire pit in the center of the room. I was cleaning the weapons I had found, dividing things up so that Adam and I had equal of everything since Preston is sending us to help out this settlement who might be willing to join the Minutemen. I remember reading the minutemen back in history books when it was nothing but history. Now, it's actual real life. There's no history about it anymore. Preston was showing Adam the map on his pipboy, marking places of interest such as Diamond City where a detective is and making sure we stayed away from some place called the Glowing Sea to the southeast. Apparently that's not a fun place to be with all the radiation.

"Make sure you guys carry lots of rad-x and radaway. Most of the food out there is radiated so you want to stock up on as much purified water as possible; the last thing you want is to drink dirty water. Be careful how much food you intake and if possible, cook it." Preston said. Adam nodded as he petted Dogmeat who had his head on Adam's lap.

"And I'm guessing bottle caps are the new currency? I keep finding them everywhere." I asked as I finished up one of the guns.

"Yeah, they are. Spend them wisely, like on stims or ammo but I'm sure if you look carefully, you'll find weapons and armor out there." Preston said. Now that I was paying attention it's kind of weird seeing him without his hat on.

"We'll remember." Adam said. It wasn't until late, once I have packed everything, that my brother and I lay awake on the mattresses. Dogmeat was between us and I could tell that the dog was helping. His wife's necklace was heavy around my own but until Adam asked for it back, I'm going to carry that weight for him. Adam was staring up at the ceiling; the dark circles under his eyes didn't help the feeling I had in my gut so I reached over to flick his ear. He flinched and turned towards me. "What?"

"Close your eyes. Try and get some sleep at least. You'll be facing the things out there and I need you ready. Remember the feeling when we would sleep in those tents before a mission? Or whenever they needed us both?"

"Like I could forget."

"Remembers that feeling. You'll need that for what's out there. Trust me, there's more than humans to worry about." I told him, remembering the bugs but most importantly, the large hulking mass that I had a stare off with. I wonder if I will ever run into that thing again? Is there even more of them?

"I figured…" Adam sighed. "I'll try and get some sleep. Night Eve." With that he turned to his other side to sleep. I felt bad but I can't really baby him, not now anyways. This isn't home, this it's like it once was. It's better to face the truth now then die in denying the reality.

~oOo~

"You carry so much anger." Mama Murphy said as I packed my bag once last time, making sure everything was there.

"Oh, why do you say that?" I asked her.

"The way you talk to your brother and the way you treat yourself." She answered.

"Then how am I supposed to treat us? Like everything is peachy-keen?"

"Like the world isn't going to end if you don't take your medicine. Like you will slip into that darkness if you slip yourself. The darkness is only dark if you want it to be."

"I need my medicine. It keeps that _thing_ in check."

"Or it makes you believe it does. But who does it control? The monster they made you or the woman who now holds the leash?"

"Adam holds the leash, I don't." I snapped at her and she chuckled.

"Of course, of course. They made have given him one but who is to that the leash can't be broken? Have a safe trip dearie." With that, Mama Murphy left me alone with my thoughts. I sighed and looked down at my hand what a vial sat. I was going to just take half, hoping it would be enough like the last time I only took half but even then, it was stretching it. I popped the top, downing half of it before putting it back in the case. I took a breath before slinging it on my back. I met up with my brother before waving to the others good-bye.

This isn't going to be easy but we have to start somewhere.

~oOo~


	4. Breathing in Chemicals

" _Stand in the ashes of a trillion dead souls, and ask the ghosts if honor matters. The silence is your answer." Javik – Mass Effect_

 _~oOo~_

The world past Concord was nothing but long stretches of rock and ruin. Skelton buildings of their pervious life linger on their fragile bones; trying so hard to remain standing to the destruction that caused them such a state. Streets were torn apart; rocky and even some had completely disappeared. The animals…were completely mutated and changed as well into something…unnatural. Feral dogs roamed in packs and the deer were split in two, their minds still hold some docile aspects but were no less dangerous.

The world was upside-down and backwards.

It was like I was Alice in Wonderland…only wonderland was hell.

And hell came in the form of an apocalypse that formed after the bombs were dropped.

Adam looked a little bit better as we made our way east to the settlement. I guess getting away from his house was doing him good and he could take his mind off things out here as well. On our way we killed some mutated crabs for some guy in an old quarry for a hundred caps. Adam wasn't happy I asked for so much but I said that caps were the new currency. This is how we buy things such as armor and weapons let alone food.

Which meant that all this pre-war money I've found that somehow managed to survive a bomb are worth nothing. Too bad; I would've been rich. However, in this world no one knows who I am and I can be anything I wanted. It wasn't actually freedom just yet but I could taste something in the air that felt like it. It made me giddy inside as we approached the settlement. But of course it turned out to be nothing more than a wild goose chase because they just sent us somewhere else. Adam gave me a look that was almost I-told-you-so but I told him to hush it.

We headed south until we hit Lexington where we stayed the night at Mystic Pines. The settlers told us that a group of raiders at the Corvega Assembly Plant were threatening them that if they didn't pay up then they would be back to kill them. That seemed to light the soldier under Adam's ass and we set up a place to us in one of the rooms. Since we still had some hours of daylight left we headed towards the Super duper mart to see what we could find there.

What we didn't expect was monsters in this wonderland…

"What the fuck are they?!" Adam screamed as he placed a bullet in between the eyes of the one that was charging at him. I heard something growl behind me and I kicked backed into something that made a crunch sound. I turned, gripping the bat I found (just sitting outside actually) then swinging wide so that the next one fell to the floor after the last one. I gave both a good whack to the head for good measure.

"They look human." I stood over one and poked at it before the bro stopped me. We continued to look around, grabbing what food we could stuff in our bags along with finding medical supplies. Of course as we dig deeper into the store I found that some minute men were here before us but it seems that whatever Adam and I fought got the better of them. Adam of course had qualms about me taking the boots the woman had one and even taking some of her armor but of course I told him that I'd rather be alive than dead. "Do you keep forgetting that there are people out there who will most likely kill you for the things you have than anything else?" I asked him as I attached everything together.

You just had to not think about it.

Think about survival…of living to see the next day.

Preston warned us about that lay outside of sanctuary. He said that the world would eat us, chew us up, and wear our skin. There were no rules out here, no protocol, and there were no police to turn to. There was nothing. Adam keep forgetting that and I was getting worried that if he came across a raider…. he wouldn't be able to fight back.

"Eve… just… I can't explain it but it feels wrong to me somehow and this is just a lot to take in." Adam said as he petted Dogmeat's head. The pup followed us to Lexington and stayed in between us as we walked. Dogmeat was also actually helpful but finding things and dropping them in front of Adam or myself. I found an old teddy bear for him and he seemed to enjoy it as I threw it around for him. Once we grabbed what we could we returned to Mystic Pines. Adam took a look around while I made a small fire to cook our food. Of course the food is nothing like the food we had a few days ago and everything tasted funny. They only thing that actually tasted decent was the sugar bomb cereal that I loved to eat in the morning.

"I miss milk." I said as I dug into the box. Adam was eating the Salisbury steak and the crab meat I took with us from the quarry. It actually wasn't that bad; a bit slimy but it still tasted like crab.

"I miss actual food." Adam said and we chuckled. We fed what remained of our half eaten meal to Dogmeat who wagged his tail happily. "We leave tomorrow around four alright? If I know people, there won't be many awake by that time."

"That's if people are still people. I've seen raiders and there nothing like the soldiers we've faced in war. Their blood thirsty and are like animals. Don't let one get the better of you." I told Adam and explained to him what happened at Concord. I left out the monster I faced; not wanting Adam to… I don't know how to explain to Adam what I saw.

"I still know how to fight Eve." Adam looked me in the eyes with a expressionless face. "I know how to kill a man."

"It's not just men Adam; woman are fighting too. Let's get some sleep. We're gonna need it." I told him and we put out the fire. We placed a dresser in front of the door and slept with pistols in our hands. I just hope nothing surprises us while we sleep. Dogmeat slept by me and it was nice to have something warm next to me. At least I can have something that reminded me of the world before.

~oOo~

"Come out, come out wherever you are!" One of the raiders sang as I hid behind a wall. I took calming breaths as I reloaded my gun. Adam was across from me, trying to relax his breathing as well. The start of this mission as I called it seemed to go well enough. We killed more of the monsters like the ones in the market and even killed a few sleeping raiders on our way to the plant. Adam's plan to leave early in the morning proved true enough as we came to the front doors. Only one person was on guard and he was easy to dispatch. I snuck up behind him, minding the spotlight and snapped his neck. Over the years I've gotten used to killing people easily and there was no remorse feeling in my gut as I did so. I've lost count of the people I've killed. How many people I was sent to silence, how many people that I felt their heartbeat under my own hands no longer beat, and how many people I couldn't even remember killing.

I've gotten used to killing people…

One of the raiders walked past me and I jumped on him, wrapping a cord around his neck and pulled tightly. He struggled and tried to get me off him but I forced him to his knees before I grabbed his face and shoving it to the ground with a sickening crunch. I took put and shoved my boot on his neck, breaking the spine. We moved forward into the plant until we reached the large room.

I noticed that there were five raiders in the room and I got an idea in my head. I signaled my brother to stand down and stay hidden. He gave me a look and nodded, crouching down as I turned towards the room. I reached my hand out and closed my eyes, concentrating. The half made car in the middle of the room began to shake loudly, getting the attention of the raiders on the catwalk above.

"What the?" I opened my eyes and swiped my hand and the car flew to the left, knocking into two of the raiders. They screamed in pain and surprise as the car knocked into them. Adam came out of hiding to open fire on them.

"Suck on this bitch!" I turned around to see a raider about to bring a bat down on my head when it suddenly stopped in midair. "What the hell?" I glared at the man who wore garbage for armor then threw the raider back against the wall before shooting it in the head. I was breathing heavy as I could feel the anger build inside of me but I forced it down.

"Eve, stop!" Adam yelled at me before shooting the remaining raider with his shotgun. With the last echo of the shot everything went quiet. I'm thankful that we left Dogmeat at the building we stayed in or else he might have gotten hurt. But… something was wrong. Of course I've used my gift before but it never made my head this funny. I rested against the wall and slid to the ground, trying to ignore the dizzy nauseous feeling as my brother came close to me.

"I told you to take it easy with this stuff. Wait…" He grabbed my bag and pulled out one of the vials that I have put in here before we left Sanctuary. He uncorked it and handed it to me. "Take it."

"No…no I can't." I said and tried to push his hand away but he grabbed my chin in my weak state to put the liquid to my lips.

"You need to take this." He said and the liquid slid down my throat. He held me close as my body began to shake and the horrible swill went down hard unlike it normally does. The anger inside me vanished and I felt more sick to my stomach than I did. Once I calmed down some Adam left me on the ground as we left to loot what was left of their hide-away. Once he came back he slung my arm over his shoulder before we left out the back door.

Of course escaping was another story as we fought our way up towards the top of the plant to kill the remaining maniacs. I was mostly out of it, trying not to get hit by the stray bullets as Adam did most of the fighting. As I lay on the concrete ceiling as Adam looked around one last time I stared up at the stars above my head. I seem to keep forgetting what the stars look like after all the time I've spent inside a lab or on the move when I was on a mission. Whenever I got the chance I would look up at the stars and imagine what would it be like to have a normal life. Adam deserved a normal life after everything that's happened. Sure it was his choice and I've made mine as well but still…what would it be like?

To not take the medication…

To not have this power…

To not have a collar around my neck...

No more dreams or nightmares…

No more worrying about the monster…

I wish life was easy some times.

If it were that easy.

"Eve…how are you feeling?" Adam asked me once he came back.

"I feel like floating if that makes sense." I said to him and he helped me up. The sun just began to rise as we made our way back to Mystic Pines. There were no birds but the blue sky peeking out was a welcome site. Dogmeat barked happily as we staggered towards the building. I knelt down and petted his soft head before we moved inside. Adam dragged one of the mattresses from one of the other rooms to the one we stayed in, making me lay down but I didn't really feel like it. I fixed the mattress so I could comfortably sit against the wall. Adam took Dogmeat out so I had more time to think about my actions at the plant. I picked up a few piece of rubble from the room and placed them in my hand. The serum might dull the monster but it didn't dull the feeling in my head whenever I moved things.

I moved the door to the vault (well I helped it move), moved the car in the plant and shoved a man into the wall. I've never had this type of practice but…. I can't say I'm not enjoying the feeling of being able to move stuff.

The rubble piece started to float in my hand and move about. First it was erratic but then they floated into a perfect rhythm. It was fascinating to watch it move about and I felt almost more powerful because I was in control. No one had a leash with me on this and it felt invigorating.

"What are you doing?" Adam asked me but not in a harsh tone. I didn't turn my head as he sat down next to me, both of us watching the rubble move about. "I thought I told you to take it easy with that."

"It helped at the plant Adam. The world has gone to hell and there is no one to report to in case someone sees me. I'm enjoying this Adam." I looked at him. "Please let me have this one thing." Adam sighed. "There's something else I need to tell you."

"What?"

"My medicine…when we woke up I only have months' worth of the vails. I took half when we woke up and the rest the following day but…."

"You tried to stop me at the plant. You tried to tell me…shit." Adam said and I nodded my head. "There is no hospitals, no military medical tents floating around, and I highly doubt I can get back to Big Mountain without getting killed. What are we gonna go?" I asked him. Adam wrapped his arm around me and rested his cheek against my head. Dogmeat rested his head in my lap, huffing softly until I started to pet him in between the ears.

"I don't know. But we'll get through his just like we always do. We'll find a hospital with equipment and make some more. Preston said that Diamond City is the best place to get help. If there are people, there has to be a hospital. We'll make more and you'll be in control. I promise you that you'll be okay." Adam said hugging me closer.

"Big brother syndrome?"

"Of course." He was quiet for a while before he tapped me on the forehead. "You know what? On our way back to the settlement I want you to practice. You're right and I'm sorry." Adam's voice cracked at the end so I looked up to see silent tears in his eyes.

"We'll find Shawn. We'll get the bastards that took him and make them pay. That I promise you." I said and held him as he began to cry once more.

We stayed in that room for a couple more hours until both of us were ready to leave. We also agreed that once we got back to Preston we would make our way to Diamond City to find this Nick Valentine who could help us. I would also look for a doctor to start making more serum but until then I would only take half doses or maybe even a couple of sips to try and to stretch it out for as long as possible. I know we'll find him.

That bastard is going to pay.

And I'm going to make it hurt…

~oOo~


End file.
